Most Australians have more money in super than anywhere else apart from their home, and many super funds now offer advice to their members. It is often promoted as free or included in your membership. For straightforward questions about your super account, it can be genuinely useful.
But advice from your super fund has limits that are not always obvious. It generally covers your account with that fund and not much else. It will not usually look at your mortgage, investments outside super, tax structures or estate plan, and it will rarely suggest that a different fund would suit you better.
This guide explains what intra-fund advice is, what it covers, how it is paid for, and when you may need advice from an adviser who looks at your whole financial position.
Super fund advice compared with independent advice
| Intra-fund advice | Advice paid from your super account | Financial adviser outside your fund | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who provides it | Your super fund, or advisers it engages | Your fund’s advisers or an external adviser, with the fee deducted from your super | A financial adviser you choose and engage directly |
| Typical scope | Simple questions about your account with that fund | Advice relating to your super, which can be more detailed | Anything from a single issue to your whole financial position |
| How it is paid for | Usually no direct fee, with costs shared across members through fund fees | A fee deducted from your super balance | A fee you pay directly, and in some cases partly from super |
| Considers finances outside super? | Generally only as needed to answer the super question | To the extent relevant to the super advice | Yes, as agreed in the scope |
| Can recommend other funds or products? | Generally no | Depends on the adviser | Yes, within their licensee’s approved product list |
| Best interests duty applies? | Yes, if it is personal advice | Yes | Yes |
| Typically suits | Investment option choice, contributions, insurance in that fund | More detailed super or retirement questions | Connected decisions, retirement, complex situations |
What is intra-fund advice?
Intra-fund advice is advice provided by a super fund to its members about their interest in that fund. Super law allows funds to spread the cost of this type of advice across all members through the fund’s general fees, rather than charging each member who uses it. That is why it is often described as free or included in your membership.
It can range from general information, such as explaining how contribution caps work, to personal advice that takes some of your circumstances into account, such as recommending an investment option within the fund that suits your age and risk tolerance.
Where it is personal advice, the same legal protections apply as for any other personal advice. The adviser must act in your best interests, provide advice that is appropriate to you, and put your interests ahead of their own. Our guide to general advice versus personal advice explains the difference.
What your super fund can usually advise on
Intra-fund advice generally covers questions about your account with that fund, such as:
- Investment options. Which of the fund’s investment options suits your age, timeframe and attitude to risk.
- Contributions. Whether to make salary sacrifice, personal deductible or after-tax contributions to your account, and how the caps apply.
- Insurance in the fund. Whether your life, TPD and income protection cover through the fund is appropriate, and how to increase, reduce or cancel it.
- Beneficiary nominations. How nominations work in that fund and what types are available.
- Retirement income from the fund. Starting an account-based pension or other retirement product offered by the fund, and how much to draw.
- Consolidating into the fund. Rolling other super accounts into your account with that fund.
Many funds have expanded their retirement advice in recent years, partly because trustees are now required to have a retirement income strategy to help members in or approaching retirement. Some funds also explain how your super interacts with the Age Pension.
What your super fund generally can’t advise on
Because intra-fund advice is about your interest in that fund, it usually does not extend to:
- Your whole financial position. Holistic financial planning across cash flow, debt, investments, insurance and estate planning.
- Investments outside super. Shares, managed funds, property or savings held in your own name, a family trust or a company.
- Other super funds. Whether a different fund, or an SMSF, would suit you better. A fund’s own advisers are generally not in a position to compare it objectively with competitors.
- Debt and mortgage strategy. For example, whether to pay down your home loan or add to super.
- Tax structures and estate planning. Including family trusts, testamentary trusts and how your super fits with your will. Our guide to family trusts versus super shows how these decisions interact.
- Your partner’s super. Unless they are a member and the advice relates to their account, a fund will not usually advise on how to balance super between partners.
The exact boundaries vary between funds. Some offer more detailed advice for a fee. If your question touches several of the areas above, it is worth asking at the start whether the fund’s adviser can actually help, or whether you need advice from outside the fund.
Advice paid for from your super account
Separate from intra-fund advice, many funds allow you to pay for personal financial advice from your super balance. The advice may come from the fund’s own advisers or, with some funds, from an external adviser you choose. The fee is deducted from your account with your consent.
The advice must generally relate to your super, although the adviser can take your wider circumstances into account in giving it. For example, retirement planning advice paid from super can consider your other assets and Age Pension eligibility, because they are relevant to how you draw on your super.
Paying from super can make advice more affordable in cash flow terms, but the fee still reduces your retirement savings. Our guide on how much financial advice costs covers fees and value.
The conflict to be aware of
Super fund advisers are generally salaried and cannot receive commissions for recommending investments. That removes one type of conflict. But they work for, or on behalf of, the fund whose products they are advising on.
That does not mean the advice is poor. For many questions, the fund’s own investment options and insurance are entirely suitable. But it is unlikely that a fund adviser will recommend that you move your super to a different fund, set up an SMSF, or reduce your super contributions to pay down your mortgage instead. Those are exactly the kinds of questions where an adviser outside the fund can offer a different perspective.
When intra-fund advice is enough
Advice from your super fund can be a good starting point when:
- your question is specifically about your account with that fund,
- most of your wealth sits in super and your finances are otherwise straightforward,
- you are broadly happy with the fund and want help using it well, and
- the decision does not have significant flow-on effects for tax, Centrelink or your estate.
For example, checking whether your investment option suits your age is a good use of intra-fund advice. Our guide on whether you are investing too aggressively or too conservatively covers the same question more broadly.
When you need advice beyond your super fund
Independent advice from a financial adviser outside your fund is usually more valuable when:
- You have significant assets outside super, such as investment property, shares or business interests.
- You are approaching retirement, where super, the Age Pension, investments, debt and estate planning all interact. Our guide on whether you can retire earlier than you think shows how many factors are involved.
- You have received a lump sum, such as an inheritance or redundancy, and need to decide where it should go. Our guide on what to do with $200,000 covers the options.
- You use or are considering complex structures, such as an SMSF or family trust.
- You want to compare super funds, or are unsure whether your current fund is the right one.
- You are going through a major life event, such as separation, a new partner or the death of a spouse. Our guide on when to see a financial adviser covers the common triggers.
In these situations, advice limited to one super account can solve one part of the problem while missing the bigger picture. Our guide on comprehensive versus limited advice explains the trade-off in more detail.
Reforms to super fund advice
The government has proposed reforms that would clarify, and in some areas expand, the advice super funds can provide to members and charge for collectively, particularly around retirement. The proposals also set out topics funds would not be able to charge for collectively, such as holistic financial planning, estate planning and tax planning. These reforms have progressed in stages, so the details may change. The core distinction is likely to remain: super funds advise on super, while broader financial planning sits with advisers outside the fund.
Questions to ask your super fund adviser
If you use your fund’s advice service, these questions help clarify what you are getting:
- Is this general advice or personal advice?
- What does the advice cover, and what does it not cover?
- Will there be a fee, and if so, how much and how will it be paid?
- Will I receive the advice in writing?
- Can you advise on anything outside my account with this fund?
- If you think I need broader advice, will you tell me?
Our 15-question checklist for financial advisers covers further questions, and our guide on how to check an adviser’s registration applies to super fund advisers as well.
If something goes wrong
If you are unhappy with advice from your super fund, start by making a complaint to the fund through its internal dispute resolution process. If the complaint is not resolved, you can take it to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority, which handles complaints about super funds and financial advisers at no cost to consumers. Our guide to AFCA and the Compensation Scheme of Last Resort explains what protection you have.
Where professional advice adds value
Your super fund can be a useful source of help for questions about your account. But super is only one part of your finances, and many of the most valuable financial decisions sit at the intersection of super and everything else: how much to put into super versus paying down debt, how to balance super between partners, how super fits with investments in your own name, and how it all comes together in retirement.
An independent financial adviser can look at the whole picture, compare your super fund with alternatives where relevant, and coordinate your super with your tax, investment, insurance and estate planning. Advice from your fund and from an external adviser can also work together, with your fund handling account-level questions and an adviser guiding the broader strategy.
If you would like advice that looks beyond your super account, our financial advice team in Adelaide can help. You can also read our guide on what to look for when choosing a financial planner in Adelaide.
Frequently asked questions
What is intra-fund advice?
Intra-fund advice is advice a super fund provides to its members about their interest in that fund, such as investment options, contributions, insurance and retirement income from the fund. The cost is generally shared across all members through the fund’s fees, rather than charged to each member who uses it.
Is advice from my super fund free?
Intra-fund advice usually has no direct fee, but it is not free. The cost is paid by members collectively through the fund’s administration fees. More detailed advice from your fund may carry a separate fee, which can often be deducted from your super balance.
Can my super fund advise me on investments outside super?
Generally not. Intra-fund advice is limited to your account with that fund. Advice about shares, property or savings held in your own name, a trust or a company, and holistic financial planning, usually requires a financial adviser outside the fund.
Will my super fund tell me if another fund would suit me better?
It is unlikely. Super fund advisers generally advise on their own fund’s products and are not in a position to compare the fund objectively with competitors. If you want to compare funds or consider an SMSF, an adviser outside your fund can provide that perspective.
Can I pay a financial adviser from my super?
In many cases, yes. Funds can deduct advice fees from your super balance with your consent, where the advice relates to your super. The adviser can consider your wider circumstances in giving that advice, but the fee reduces your retirement savings.
Does advice from my super fund have to be in my best interests?
Yes, if it is personal advice. The best interests duty and related obligations apply to personal advice from super fund advisers in the same way as to any other financial adviser. General information and general advice do not carry the same obligations.
What can I do if I’m unhappy with advice from my super fund?
Start by complaining to the fund through its internal dispute resolution process. If the complaint is not resolved, you can take it to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority, which handles complaints about super funds and financial advice at no cost to consumers.
General advice warning. This article contains general information only and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. It describes the general nature of super fund advice services and is not a recommendation about any particular fund or service. The services offered vary between super funds, and laws governing super fund advice are subject to change. You should consider whether the information is appropriate for you and seek personal financial advice before acting on any of it. Money Path Pty Ltd is a Corporate Authorised Representative (No. 001306822) of Australia National Investment Group, AFSL 522028.
